Blackjack is one of the most popular table games among players who visit casinos. One reason for blackjack's popularity is its simplicity. A player places a wager of a wager amount and competes against a dealer by accumulating playing cards. The party (i.e., the dealer or the player) that accumulates cards having the highest numerical total, without exceeding twenty-one, wins the hand of blackjack. When determining a total, face cards are counted as ten, and an ace can be counted as either a one or an eleven.
When a party has two cards that total twenty-one (e.g., an ace and a queen), he or she has a “natural” which will always win unless the other party also has a natural. That is, a player who has an ace and a queen (for a total of twenty-one) will win against a dealer who has a nine, a seven and a three (also for a total of twenty-one). A player who accumulates cards having a total greater than twenty-one (e.g., a nine, an eight, and a six) always loses, even if the dealer also accumulates cards having a total greater than twenty-one. A further discussion of blackjack rules can be found in Stanford Wong, “Professional Blackjack” (1994).
The winning party receives payment of a winning amount based on the wager amount. For example, if a player loses, he or she may provide payment of the wager amount to the dealer. Similarly, if the player wins, he or she may retain the original wager amount and receive an additional payment of an amount equal to the wager amount from the dealer. In the case of a winning natural, the player may receive a larger wining amount (e.g., payment of an amount equal to one and a half times the wager amount).
The rules traditionally used to play blackjack, however, have a disadvantageous feature. In particular, approximately 8.7% of all hands will result in a tie between the player and the dealer (depending in part on a player's behavior), also known as a “push.” For example, both the dealer and the player may accumulate cards having a total of nineteen. Similarly, both the dealer and the player may have a natural. In such cases, neither the dealer nor the player win and no money changes hands.
A casino is not satisfied when a blackjack hand results in a push, because such a result represents a lost opportunity for the casino. That is, every push provides no profit for the casino. If the number of pushes could be reduced or eliminated, the amount of profit that could be made by the casino would increase (assuming that the odds of winning the blackjack hand are statistically in the casino's favor).
A player may also not be satisfied when a hand of blackjack results in a push. The lack of a winning result, or even a losing result, may reduce the player's excitement and interest in the game.
In a “Push Your Luck” blackjack game, a player can place a side wager, before a hand of blackjack is played, betting that the hand will result in a push. If the blackjack hand does result in a push, the player wins the side wager (e.g., wins an amount based on the side wager, the number of hands being played, and/or a random number generator).
The Push Your Luck system, however, also has a number of disadvantages. For example, the side wager does not resolve the hand of blackjack itself. In addition, a player must place the side wager prior to playing the hand of blackjack, and many players may be unwilling to do so. Moreover, having a separate wager may complicate and slow down the game, reducing one of the reasons why blackjack is so popular. Another disadvantage is that a player may change the way he or she plays the game (e.g., by accumulating additional cards) to increase the chance of achieving a push. For example, a player may attempt to keep track of which playing cards remain in the deck (i.e., by “counting cards”) to increase his or her chances of winning the side wager.
A need exists, therefore, for systems and methods to resolve a hand of blackjack that results in a push.